What is Cognitive Behavior Therapy?

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy based on the idea that interactive relationships exist between thoughts, feelings, and actions. CBT’s premise is that helping someone learn new behavioral patterns will have impacts on their thoughts and feelings. Similarly, helping someone recognize and adjust unhelpful thoughts/thought patterns will impact their actions and feelings. CBT is highly collaborative and focuses on learning and skill-building. Research indicates that CBT is an extremely effective form of therapy for many kinds of problems, including anxiety disorders, body-focused repetitive behaviors, depression, ADHD, etc. CBT has several benefits over other types of therapy, such as generally being shorter term and problem-focused. Additionally, because CBT involves learning new ways of acting and thinking, the benefits can last long after treatment ends. Many people find that their self-esteem and self-confidence improve after a course of CBT as well. More specific treatments, such as Exposure Therapy, Exposure with Response Prevention, and the ComB Model, are CBT-based and fall under the CBT umbrella.